


New Sidekick, New Boss

by RoaringTurtle



Series: Other Kinds of Quadrilaterals [1]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Adrien Agreste Never Went to Public School, Alternate Universe, Ambiguous/Open Ending, Dramatic Irony, F/M, Fluff, Gen, Humor, Mentor AU, Oneshot, Reverse Love Square for a bit, Workplace AU, aged up AU, pre-reveal
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-03
Updated: 2020-06-03
Packaged: 2021-03-04 01:35:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,455
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24525505
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RoaringTurtle/pseuds/RoaringTurtle
Summary: For the past year, Ladybug has had to defend Paris from Akuma attacks alone. Getting a Partner was supposed to take some of the weight off her back, but instead she has to show him the ropes. And to add to all that stress, her new boss at work is literally the worst!
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir & Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Series: Other Kinds of Quadrilaterals [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1798078
Kudos: 58





	New Sidekick, New Boss

**Author's Note:**

> I was originally going to post all the works in the series in the same work, but I decided to separate it across multiple works, so that's why the name and tags and stuff changed, but the story is still the same!
> 
> Or you had no idea what I mean in which case ignore all that!

It was dark by the time Ladybug started training her new partner. She would have preferred to do this in the daytime since that was when most Akumas came out, but alas, she was a working woman who had a job and couldn’t take too much time off since she had to pay rent _somehow_. But it probably didn’t matter much to Chat Noir, since apparently, he had night vision. Ladybug was a little bit jealous since that would have been useful with certain Akuma she had fought over the last year, but he couldn’t cure the city like she did so it was probably better that she was chosen to be a superhero first. Besides, they had each other now, so that was some weight off her shoulders.

For the past year, she had been fighting Akuma’s alone. Hawkmoth had demanded the Ladybug and Black Cat Miraculous, but only Ladybug had come to stop him. In theory, Ladybug understood that they probably shouldn’t send both of them into battle, it wouldn’t be safe. But in practice, Ladybug hated it. 

Because being a superhero is hard. 

Her burden as a hero was overwhelming. Ladybug had nearly given up on being a hero after her first failure. The only reason she had kept going was because she had to. But it was so difficult. Every failure was on her, and failing as a superhero had dire consequences. And she couldn’t even tell anyone about her double life, so she was left to deal with this struggle alone. Tikki just didn’t understand that Marinette didn’t always want to be Ladybug. She had to wear a mask for her suit, but the real mask was the confidence she used to hide her doubts. Ladybug was a symbol of hope for Parisians, a shining example of a hero. 

And it affected her personal life too. No one could understand why Marinette was constantly late or why she had to flake out of the things she loved. She had to give up so many opportunities because she couldn’t leave Paris, and she couldn’t get promoted at her job since she couldn’t make it her first priority.

Sure, she sometimes had temporary heroes to help out, but it wasn’t the same. Tikki told her that the Black Cat was supposed to be her partner. The Yang to her Yin, the Left Hand to her Right Hand, her other half. But try as he might, Master Fu just couldn’t find someone who could pass his trial. Having the Power of Destruction at your fingertips could easily corrupt anyone, so only a very specific type of person could be chosen to handle the responsibility. 

So when she met Cat Noir one day during an Akuma battle, she was pretty sure that she was more excited than him.

And that was no easy feat. Cat Noir was ecstatic to be working with _the_ Ladybug. He was giddy as a kid, which was strange considering the fact he was about the same age as her. (Well, probably. There was magic after all. He could actually be a kid for all she knew.) He was so excited, in fact, he wasted his one-time power of destruction on a goalpost to see what he could do, forgetting the one time use part. It was fine in the end since Ladybug saved the day, but they both realized he needed some training before he could handle a proper threat.

So there she was, in the middle of the night, watching him jump across buildings to get used to his newfound agility. And he was having so much fun with it. He whooped and screamed with joy as he flew through the air, doing backflips and handstands. Ladybug felt a little jealous that he was having so much fun. Somehow, she had gotten used to doing superhuman feats along the way. Honestly, it was a little disorienting to become coordinated and have super-strength all of a sudden, especially considering how clumsy she was as Marinette. It just felt wrong. She was used to her body, so suddenly becoming super flexible and super strong was confusing. She was initially hesitated to try stretching too far since her mind knew her body couldn’t normally bend like that, but apparently, she could do the splits as Ladybug. Although it also led to some embarrassing moments, like when she forgot she couldn’t help her father lift 25 kgs of flour as Marinette.

“Having fun?” Ladybug asked as her new partner used his telescopic staff to pole vault next to her. He turned to answer her, but since he was no longer paying attention, he slipped and stumbled on the rooftop.

“So much fun!” Chat had the biggest grin as he dusted himself off. “I can’t believe you get to do this every day! I can’t believe _I_ get to do this every day!” He was practically bouncing at the thought.

“It’s not all fun and games, you know. We have a duty to the city to protect it.” Ladybug admonished. She didn’t want to rain on his parade, but if he was ever going to be her partner, he would have to take this a lot more seriously.

“Of course, Ladybug,” Chat quickly sobered up, but couldn’t completely hide his excitement, “It’s just that I’ve always wanted to help people as a superhero. You’re an inspiration, after all.” Ladybug felt a little awkward with the hero worship that came with the new heroes. It was undeserved. Anyone would have done what she did if they got her earrings. Tikki insisted that she was better than she thought, but Tikki always saw the best in people, even if it wasn’t true.

“I mean, it’s not like you can’t have fun as a superhero” Ladybug relented, “I just wanted to make sure you knew what being a superhero would entail. It will be difficult, and I just want you to be prepared since you will be my new partner.”

“Oh, no, no, no! I definitely couldn’t match up with you!” Chat waved his hands in the air frantically, “You’ve saved Paris so many times, and I still have so much to learn! I’m more of a sidekick than a partner, really!” Chat gave an apologetic smile, so it was really hard to get mad at him, as disappointed as she was.

Ladybug mentally sighed as she resigned to the fact that she probably wasn’t going to get the partner she hoped for from the Black Cat Miraculous.

* * *

“Is there something on your mind?” Ladybug asked as Chat hit himself in the head with his own staff for the fifth time. They were training with weapons now that Chat had gotten used to his movements, but Ladybug couldn’t be much help right now. Her experience with a yo-yo did not translate to the bo staff, and she couldn’t spar with him either since it would be too one-sided. Partly due to her experience, but mostly since Chat didn’t put any weight in his strikes against her since he couldn’t picture himself winning. So all Ladybug could do was watch and occasionally give general tips on fighting.

But that was a stupid mistake. He was obviously distracted, which translated into letting it extend too far and smack him in the back of the head since he was careless.

“Actually yeah, but it’s kinda a personal issue.” Chat sheepishly admitted, rubbing the back of his head. Their suits reduced the impact, but it still stings. “Um, can I talk to you about it, or would it be dangerous because of the whole Secret Identity thing?”

“Don’t you have any friends who you could talk about it with, instead?” Ladybug mentally cursed as she realized how insensitive that sounded. She honestly hated how professional she had to be as Ladybug.

“I was kinda homeschooled for most of my life, and I mostly kept to myself in University, so not really? I mean I do have some people I talk with, but this is sort of heavy so I don’t really want to burden them with this. And it’s also kind of superhero-related so I’m not really sure how to explain that to them,” Chat admitted, not looking Ladybug in the eyes.

“Well, if you keep it vague enough, it should be fine. Don’t mention anything specific like names of course.” Ladybug told him, because how could she not? He was her partner, even if he wouldn’t admit it, so she wanted to help him!

“Really? Thanks!” Chat eyes lit up, and his smile was just so infectious that Ladybug couldn’t help but grin back at him.

“Anytime,” Ladybug assured, “So what’s the deal?” She patted a spot on the ground next to her, motioning for him to sit with her. He made his way over.

“Don’t get me wrong, I’m thrilled that I get to work with you, but this is kind of a huge responsibility. And so even though I love doing this, it’s kinda stressful since I actually got a promotion at my job. So now I am going to be in charge of this team of people, but I just don’t really feel qualified. I mean, I’m familiar with the stuff they do, but I was in a field that was… tangentially related to it. Sorry, that doesn’t make sense, but I’m trying to keep it vague. And I don’t really feel qualified to become a permanent hero, especially since all the other temporary heroes are so much better than me, and so it all kind of merged together to become this huge ball of stress,” Chat mimed an imaginary ball in front of him, and Ladybug couldn’t help but let out a small giggle at the absurd motion.

“Sorry, I’m not making fun of you,” Ladybug assured after Chat looked heartbroken that she was laughing at him. It was a little endearing, if she was completely honest. “But don’t worry. Master Fu didn’t give anyone the Black Cat Miraculous for the longest time because no one else was right for it. You need to understand that you were chosen to be Chat Noir for a reason, so you shouldn’t worry about your worthiness. Besides, you are way better at this now than when you started.”

“Yeah, I didn’t even waste my Cataclysm last time!” Chat nodded proudly, which was just too much for Ladybug’s poor heart. He shouldn’t be allowed to be this adorable. 

“As for that team you are going to manage, just be honest. Tell them you aren’t the most confident so you’ll have to rely on them. Oh, and make sure to actually listen to their input,” Ladybug advised, “I’m sure they’ll understand and be able to help in the transition. Besides, you’re a quick learner, if you ask me.” Chat flushed at the compliment from his idol. Chat gave off a vibe that made Ladybug want to protect and help him. She was sure she couldn’t be the only one to feel that way.

“Yeah, I guess you’re right! I was freaking out over nothing.” Chat agreed, eager to resume his practice. He swung with such gusto, that Ladybug just had to root for the overenthusiastic man, in both his superhero and civilian identities.

* * *

“So how did your first day at work go?” Ladybug asked Chat as they trained at night. They had just gone over the elemental potions and what they could do. She made Tikki’s into Macarons, but apparently, Chat Noir’s Kwami, Plagg, preferred cheese. After the lesson, they had some downtime as Chat just did some basic exercises by himself. The red superhero would still shout out pieces of advice, but with less frequency than when he started his training, so Ladybug was kind of bored.

But mostly it was just to get him to talk. He was always joking around and lightening the mood around her, it always made her feel refreshed. And after her horrible day at work, she needed that. Although Chat ought to cut down on the puns.

“It went pretty well! I followed your advice and told them I was counting on them, and I think most of them seemed okay with that. It didn’t hurt that the old team leader wasn’t that popular either. Although there was this one person on the team, and I don’t think she likes me too much.” Chat reminisced, much to Ladybug’s confusion.

“How can someone not like you? You’re literally sunshine incarnate!” Ladybug asked, extremely incredulous. Hating Chat was like hating cookies! What kind of soulless person could possibly be so misguided?

“Well, I don’t exactly act like this outside of the suit. I wish I was free to act like this, but I can’t exactly do that as a civilian…” Chat had a faraway look in his eyes, which seemed so foreign on those eyes that were always filled with mirth.

“Yeah, I’m not this confident as a civilian either, but that doesn’t mean I’m a completely different person, either.” Ladybug reassured. “Although I’m told I can be a little soft-spoken.”

“That’s hard to imagine.” Chat face scrunched up in thought, but his ever-present smile was still there. “You seem like you’d be a force of nature, even as a civilian.”

“Yeah, it can be hard sometimes. It’s frustrating when I want to say something, but I just can’t bring myself to do it.”

“Did something happen recently?” Chat asked, surprisingly intuitive on what bothered Ladybug.

“Just some stuff at work, don’t worry about it.” Ladybug brushed it off.

“C’mon, I told you my _Tail_.” Chat smirked as he waved the fake tail hanging off his belt. 

“Oh my god, that’s horrible,” Ladybug groaned but couldn’t stop grinning. Honestly, it might help to vent with him. She couldn’t really talk about it with her best friend, Alya. She loved that Alya would always try to fix any problems that Marinette, but sometimes there were problems and just nothing she could do, and that made Alya furious. Chat, on the other hand, didn’t know anything. He was perfectly anonymous, so she could say whatever she wanted.

“Well, we kind of got a new boss at my job, and he is the absolute worst.” Ladybug began, “Like our last boss was super egotistical and never listened to us, so I’m glad she’s gone, but this new guy knows absolutely nothing! He only got the job because of nepotism, which is absolutely infuriating! He’s probably the same age as me, and I’m one of the youngest people in my department! And it isn’t like he’s talented either since he expects _us_ to do all the work so he can take the credit. I’ve seen his type before, but no one seems to notice! They’re all head over heels for him since his Dad is important!” 

Ladybug was shaking with anger as she thought of Adrien Agreste. The Blunette had gotten her dream job as a designer at Gabriel, and hoped to learn from experienced chief designers. Instead her last boss was extremely paranoid about her assistants stealing her designs and barely let any of them do meaningful work. So Marinette wasn’t exactly distraught when her boss left to start her own independent brand. But her dream of having an actual mentor was dashed when they hired the CEO’s son as her team’s new Chief Designer.

Sure, Adrien was a good model, but modeling and design were completely different! He should have at least been transferred as an assistant before becoming a chief designer. And her fears were confirmed when Adrien had gathered all the designers in his team to tell them some bullshit which essentially boiled down to the fact that he expected them to do all the work. And the worst part was that she was the only one who didn’t seem to buy into his nice guy act. He gave off the same vibes as her childhood bully, Chloe.

Anyone could see that smile didn’t reach his eyes!

“Man, that sucks,” Chat agreed, “But hopefully your coworkers will figure him out. You can only get so far by faking.”

“You know, I wish you were my boss instead. Maybe I should switch with that one person who hates you.” Ladybug joked, and Chat seemed to like the idea.

* * *

“Pound it,” Chat Noir and Ladybug said in unison as they did a celebratory first bump. They fled the scene, but they didn’t really need to be in such a hurry since their timers were nearly full.

“Hey, do you wanna hang out for a bit?” Ladybug asked, “We haven’t really spent anytime together after you finished training.”

“With you, my lady?” Chat smirked, “Definitely.” Ever since he realized Ladybug’s name could be used as a pun, he had never used her proper name. Although the fact that it was simply a pun and nothing more made her feel hollow for reasons she refused to name. But he really was a far cry from the newbie who practically worshipped the ground she stepped on.

“That’s great! Let me feed Tikki and we can meet up at our usual place!” Ladybug referred to a certain rooftop that he used to use for practice. It was large and flat, and no one lived there so they never bothered anyone trying to sleep. After that quick pit stop, she met her partner at their spot.

“So, anything new?” Chat asked, “What happened to that horrible boss of yours? Did he get fired yet?” During his training, Ladybug had regaled him of tales that were essentially nitpicking every single thing he did wrong, but as vaguely as possible. Truthfully, she was terrible at it, but at least the blonde seemed to think she was hilarious when she tried to explain how Adrien didn’t know the difference between a hemming stitch and a catch stitch, all while hiding the fact she was talking about sewing.

Although now Ladybug felt a little guilty about that.

“Actually, he isn’t that bad…” Ladybug scratched the back of her head and gave an apologetic grin. “I mean, he’s no expert in the field, but he did have some background knowledge. So he wasn’t completely useless.” Adrien was a model, but he had been in the fashion industry since he was in diapers. He had grown up around designers, so he knew what he was talking about. He wasn’t a genius when coming up with designs, but he had an eye for quality. He knew what would work, and he knew how to tweak the others to make it work. Also, it was pretty obvious Adrien had taken some time and studied before his promotion. And he also brought a unique perspective as a former model.

Also, it helped that the model was just fun to be around, almost like Chat. They had a similar sense of humor, after all. But that didn’t mean Marinette was a fan. If she ever heard how they made a _seamless_ team again, she would throw something! She also made a vow that Chat Noir and Adrien could never meet, or their puns would be too much for her.

“Really? That’s great! Oh, but he didn’t steal your work, did he? You were worried about that last time.” Chat recalled.

“Surprisingly enough, he wasn’t lying when he said he’d listen to us. He’s been good about it. I’m learning so much from the other people on my team, and the atmosphere isn’t stuffy anymore! And as for credit, it’s honestly embarrassing how much he gives to the members.” Ladybug wanted to hide her head in her hands as she thought about how overbearing Adrien could be in making sure each of their talents was known. He always left arrows pointing to who did what. It made the pages cluttered, but Adrien felt like it was necessary. He wouldn’t budge on keeping the notes. And he was always praising everyone for their talents. He was just too nice.

It would have been fine if Marinette was just a normal designer, but there was a certain page that only had a single arrow, which simply stated Marinette. All the other designs had dozens of revisions, but hers had been the only one to go through unedited. Even Gabriel Agreste himself had complimented it! She was proud, of course, but this was too much!

“It’s a shame, but I can’t replace that one member who hates you anymore,” Ladybug chuckled. Chat had talked about how passive-aggressive the woman had been to him and was increasingly frustrated at how amusing Ladybug found it. Honestly, Ladybug wished Chat could be more specific on these acts of defiance because it seemed to be exactly what she would do!

“Actually, you’re not the only one who’s had a change in opinion. I don’t think she hates me anymore.” Chat mused.

“What happened? Please don’t tell me you apologized! You didn’t even do anything!” Ladybug was incensed on behalf of her more laid back partner. Chat had wanted to at first, but Ladybug talked him out of it.

“Nah, I think I just gave her the wrong impression. I can be kind of awkward as a civilian, so she must have thought I was insincere or something. She actually apologized! But I’m glad she’s not mad at me anymore, though. She’s actually really talented! Honestly, she’s great. She’s probably the best at what we do. If anything, she should be the boss instead of me. And she is so smart and kind, and pretty too.” Chat gave a dreamy sigh as he thought of this mystery lady.

“Sounds like someone’s got a crush,” Ladybug tried to ignore the sinking feeling in her stomach as she listened to Chat sing this woman’s praises.

“Just a little,” Chat gave a guilty grin, “But it’s not like I’m not going to ask her out or anything. It would be super awkward since I’m her boss. Besides, I’m a superhero! I don’t have time for dates.” There was something vulnerable in that expression. Something he wasn’t telling Ladybug.

“Hey, you shouldn’t hold back just because you’re Chat Noir. You deserve to be happy.” Ladybug ignored the complicated feelings she felt about Chat’s confession. Sure Ladybug never went out with anyone since she had to save Paris, but now there were two of them! That had to reduce the workload by at least half.

“Thanks, LB.” Chat gave a half hearted smile that didn’t reach his eyes.

* * *

“Ha! I won!” Chat gasped for air as he crossed the finish line that tourists called the Eiffel Tower. His victories against his lady were few and far between, so he had to savor each one. Although recently he had been doing a lot better against her.

“You got lucky!” Ladybug insisted, arriving seconds later, “They put up a new Billboard, so I had to go around that!” 

“Excuses, excuses.” Chat Noir stuck his tongue out at his partner, but Ladybug just rolled her eyes. 

Honestly, Ladybug never expected the excitable superhero to grow into his own like this. They worked flawlessly as a team now, almost telepathic. They knew exactly what to do together and their plans always worked. In fact, Ladybug even found herself counting on her partner to fix her mistakes from time to time. For the first time in a long time, Marinette had fun being Ladybug, and it was all thanks to Chat. 

Sure, there were times she wished for something more, but she got the partner she always hoped for, so she felt like she should be satisfied with that.

“You look pretty happy for a loser,” Chat mocked, which brought Ladybug back to earth.

“I’ll have you know I’m not always a loser. In fact, I got a promotion recently.” A year ago, Ladybug would have never dreamed of sharing something personal as Ladybug, but a lot had changed since then. And the promotion thing was true. Apparently, Gabriel Adreste had been so happy with her work, that he promoted her to a chief designer. Obviously, she missed the rest of her team and Adrien, but it was the chance of a lifetime! She would have to thank Adrien, of course. She was pretty sure he was the one who advocated for her promotion the most, after all. He had always thought it was a pity she was working under him when she had so much more talent than him.

But with the words ‘promotion’, Chat’s cat-like smile fell.

“Something wrong?” The blunette asked.

“No, nothing like that. It’s kind of stupid.” Chat admitted.

“I’ll be the judge of that.” Ladybug hated when Chat put himself down. She preferred his false bravado any day of the week.

“Alright, but don’t make fun of me.” Chat rolled his eyes, before eventually coming up with the courage to explain his situation. “So do you remember that one team member who used to hate me?”

“Your crush?” Ladybug couldn’t help but want to tease him. It also helped her pretend she didn’t feel anything painful in her throat when she thought of the two of them together.

“It was a tiny crush! Let it go! But anyways, she got promoted, so she isn’t working for me anymore. In fact, she’s leading a different team now. And don’t get me wrong, I’m really proud of her! I actually recommended her for it when they had an opening. But, I just feel kind of lonely now. You know I don’t have that many friends, but I’d like to think we were close. It just feels weird now that she’s gone.”

“Hey, you guys still work at the same place though, right? It isn’t like she left the country.” Ladybug reasoned, feeling something complicated about the departure of the mystery woman. 

“Yeah, but I guess I just didn’t want anything to change? I liked things how they were before. But I also don’t want her to waste her talents by working for me! It’s a paradox.” Chat looked so melancholic, and Ladybug hated it.

“Don’t you mean a _purr_ -adox?” Ladybug felt disgusting as she punned, but it was worth it to see the small smile grow on Chat’s face. “Besides, I don’t think change is necessarily bad. I mean, a year ago, I was working alone, but I wouldn’t trade what we have now for anything! Besides, even if everything else changes, I’ll always be here for you.” Ladybug told Chat with an air of finality, which seemed to snap Chat out of his depression.

“Of course you’re right, as usual.” Chat violently shook his head, as if to shake off that funk. “Thanks, Partner.” The blonde gave that genuine smile that Ladybug loved so much.


End file.
